England vs India: Ravi Shastri picks India’s playing XI for first Test

Former Team India head coach Ravi Shastri has revealed his choice of India’s playing XI for the first Test against England, scheduled to start on June 20 at Headingley, Leeds in the new World Test Championship 2025-27 cycle.

Advertisment

Notably, Team India will be led by the new captain, Shubman Gill, on the England tour, with Virat Kohli and Rohit Sharma announcing their retirements from Tests. Shastri went ahead with the right-left combination of Yashasvi Jaiswal and KL Rahul for the opening slots, while the young and consistent batter Sai Sudharsan took up the No.3 spot.

“It would be (Yashasvi) Jaiswal, and with him will be KL Rahul, because I think this is a big tour for him. He's the most experienced of the batters. He opened last time when India toured England, got a hundred, (and) had a good tour. So I would hope for him to open the innings. At three, I'll go with the youngster, Sai Sudarshan. Whatever I've seen of him, he's very impressive. This tour will be a good exposure for him,” Shastri said in the ICC Review.

Moving ahead, Shastri slotted the new Indian captain Shubman Gill at No.4 while Karun Nair, the comeback man, is occupied in the No.5 slot in the middle-order, thanks to his county cricket experience. On the other hand, keeper-batter Rishabh Pant is placed at the No.6 position.

Advertisment

“In all probability, depending on what current form is, it'll be Karun Nair. He bats at five, it's a long time since he played for India. Six will be (Rishabh) Pant. I think he (Nair) has worked really hard. He's just worked his way back into the side. The number of runs he's got in first-last cricket is incredible,” Shastri stated.

Furthermore, Shastri went ahead with Ravindra Jadeja as the main spinner in the XI while Shardul Thakur took up the other all-rounder spot. On the other hand, he has picked Jasprit Bumrah and Mohammed Siraj as two frontline pacers alongside one between Prasidh Krishna and Arshdeep Singh taking the final spot in the pace battery.

“I would go with three fast bowlers, (plus) Shardul Thakur. I know it'll be a tough one between Shardul and Nitish Kumar Reddy, but you have to see who bowls how much. If Reddy is going to give you 12, 14 overs, then he might get the nod because of his batting,” Shastri observed.

Advertisment

“And the three fast bowlers would be, I would go with Prasidh Krishna, I would go with Mohammed Siraj and of course Jasprit Bumrah. In Leeds, if it's overcast, and it's cloudy, there might be the temptation of going with the left-armer Arshdeep Singh as well. So it will be Prasidh Krishna or Arshdeep, but the other two will be Siraj and Bumrah,” he concluded.

Ravi Shastri’s playing XI for the first Test vs England:

Yashasvi Jaiswal, KL Rahul, Sai Sudharsan, Shubman Gill (c), Karun Nair, Rishabh Pant (wk), Ravindra Jadeja, Shardul Thakur, Prasidh Krishna/Arshdeep Singh, Jasprit Bumrah, Mohammed Siraj.

Stay updated with the latest cricket news, match insights, and exclusive updates at Sky247 India and download the Sky247 app to start betting today!